GB face Japan in penultimate game of tournament

Great Britain’s senior mens team are set to face Japan later on today in their penultimate game of the Division 1A World Championship tournament in Budapest.

So far in the tournament GB have struggled against their opposition and are yet to secure their first points of the tournamnet following a 4-2 defeat to Hungary, 5-0 to Kazakhstan and 5-1 against Italy on Wednesday. Their rivals today are Japan who currently occupy 4th spot in the table after their sole victory against Korea on Wednesday.

GB started the tournament in high spirits and pushed Hungary all the way in their opening game on Sunday night; however they have been left in deep water following the tough defeats to Kazakhstan and Italy. Japan have also struggled so far in the tournament with defeats also to Kazakhstan and Italy and their only victory coming against the lowest ranked side Korea.

GB will also end the tournament tomorrow afternoon when they face Korea. As with GB themselves and also Japan, Korea have struggled to match the pace of the top 3 in the group, however were able to record an impressive shoot-out victory against Hungary on Monday. They currently sit just above GB in the group standings with 2 points and GB will surely be looking for two victories from the final games to make the jump above at least one if not both of their rivals.

Today’s game will once again be shown on Premier Sports live on Sky with a face-off time of 16:00. Tomorrow’s final game against Korea starts at 12:30.

GB hoping to pull off the Italian Job

It is a big day for Great Britain as they face-off in their third match of the Division 1A World Championships; against tough opposition.

Italy is the team in the way today and GB will be hoping to turn their fortunes around against the 16th seed country.
Italy has been in good form so far in the tournament and has been the early leaders, alongside Kazakhstan, having won their opening two games.

It is a case of missed opportunities for GB however as they lost 4-2 to Hungary on the opening night and were blanked 5-0 by Kazakhstan a day later. However the results do not reflect the performance on the ice, with GB holding their own against two countries that are ranked well above them in the IIHF World Ranking order; but with the round robin style tournaments such as these the world rankings count for nothing and it goes down to how you play on the day.

Italy have comfortably beaten Korea (4-0) and Japan (4-1) so far in the tournament but GB will be hoping to put up a better fight in this afternoon’s game.

Belfast Giants’ netminder Stephen Murphy told the Ice Hockey UK website; “We are used to the pressure, we are used to the tough games, so we are well prepared for this. We need to keep our energy levels up and we have a lot of positives to take forward.

“Italy are a good team, they are an A pool team and tough opposition for sure. Our aim is to get something from the game and take it forward into our last two games.”

Penalty trouble was something that blighted GB during the final Olympic qualification round in Latvia earlier this year and was something that Assistant Coach Doug Christiansen hoped they could improve on in this tournament.

In Latvia GB was the highest ranked country in terms of penalties taken having registered 54PIM over the three games. So far in this tournament, improvements have been made, and GB are ranked 5th overall with 22PIM from their first two games.

Further improvements have also been seen in terms of scoring opportunities however luck has not bounced our way with those chances being converted into actual goals.

Both teams will feel a little refreshed having had a day off yesterday and GB will go into the game in high spirits and full of confidence. An early goal would give them a great boost which could lead them to victory; however they must not let their heads drop should Italy take the lead.

GB’s game will once again be shown live on Premier Sports (Sky channel 428) with the face-off at 3pm.

GB suffer first game defeat to hosts.

Hungary 4 – 2 Great Britain

Great Britain opened their Division 1 A World Championship tournament in Budapest with a loss to the hosts, Hungary, in a 4-2 thriller.

The hosts had the better chances of the early exchange of the opening 20 minutes, however it was GB that got on the scoreboard first. With GB holding possession in the offensive zone, Ashley Tait fed the puck across ice to David Phillips on the blueline who fired a shot on goal. With Levente Szuper screened in front the shot floated through the five-hole to give them a 1-0 lead at 16:06.

GB celebrate the opening goal of the game against Hungary

The second period started with GB conceding their second penalty of the game as Jonathan Weaver was called for hooking. With the man advantage Hungary set about breaking down the GB defence. Working up the ice Marton Vas fed the puck to Balazs Ladanyi in the centre circle. Making his way to the left of the zone he centred the puck to the unmarked Gergo Nagy who one timed his shot past Stephen Murphy to level the scores early in the middle stanza.

Just before the mid-way point of the game Hungary took the lead for the first time. Janos Vas’ shot from the right was deflected away by Murphy but only as far as Marton Vas who fired the shot into the empty net from the left.

Less than two minutes later and GB were back in it at 2-2. Gaining the puck on the blueline Weaver made a quick pass to Rob Dowd who was rushing down centre ice. Despite a trip he was able to flick the puck on goal. With the initial shot blocked the puck bounced loose in front for Colin Shields to slot home and tie the scores.

Ladanyi put the hosts in front again at 36:37 for a lead they would not surrender. Working into the GB zone he fired a shot from the left face-off circle which was deflected past Murphy for 3-2. Hungary would have gone into the break with a two goal cushion, but their fourth effort was washed out, giving GB a glimmer of hope in the final 20 minutes.

Shortly after the break GB went close to equalising the scores once again when Matthew Myers big slap shot from centre ice only to be delfected away; but Phil Hill almost went close collecting the rebound and working his way around the back of the net, but Szuper was up to the task and the scores remained 3-2.

Hungary did grab a fourth in the game with less than 10 minutes to play. Arpad Mihaly worked behind the GB net before turning and releasing a shot on Murphy. With the shot going wide the puck worked is way around the boards to the blueline  where Andras Horvath slapped the puck back into the zone, despite a block by Robert Lachowicz the puck dribbled through to Ladislav Sikorcin, with a big slap shot the puck beat Murphy on stick side to make it 4-2.

GB had a late chance on the powerplay but couldn’t make it count and so the game ended with defeat.

Head Coach Tony Hand said to IHUK; “This was a performance to be proud of but sadly it did not go our way. We perhaps were not spot on offensively in the first period, but we got better as the game went on.

“The guys gave everything they had and threw their bodies on the line. We must not get too down and must lift ourselves now for tomorrow’s game.”

GB see themselves in 4th place in the group behind opening day winners Italy, Kazakhstan and Hungary.

Kazakhstan beat Japan in the opening game of the tournament 5-2, before Italy provided a clinicaly performance to romp to a 4-0 victory over Korea.

GB will face-off against Kazakhstan in the second game today, after Italy beat Japan 4-1 in the early game of the day.

The last time the two countrys met at the final Olympic qualification game in Latvia, Kazakhstan had the measure of GB and won 6-0. This is definitely something GB will be hoping to revenge when they take to the ice at 3pm.

Hand names 22 man squad for World Championships

Great Britain’s Head Coach Tony Hand has named his 22 man squad for the World Championships in Hungary later this month; showing minor changes to the roster that made the trip to the pre-olympic qualifers in February. A strong 41 man squad was announced just over a week ago, with notable inclusions from English Premier League (EPL) teams; two of which have made the final cut.

Four changes have been made to the team that was originally selected for the final Olympic qualifers in Latvia in February. Steve Lee, who was replaced by Jonathan Weaver for Latvia due to injury, has been included from the start. Fellow defender, Luke Boothroyd, has also been included fresh from his play-off winning services for the Manchester Phoenix. Forwards Ben Davies (Cardiff Devils) and Aaron Nell, of the EPL Swindon Wildcats, have also made the cut in the 22 man squad.

Luke Boothroyd has been included in the team to fly to Hungary. Photo by David Steadman

Unfortunately Ben O’Connor has been denied release from his KHL club to attend the tournament; whilst Rod Sarich, Mark Garside and Jason Hewitt will also miss out.

GB have began their training camp this week, following the EIHL and EPL play-off finals weekend, before heading out to Hungary on Friday.

They will face the hosts in the first match of the Division One – Group A tournament. The teams play a single round-robin series. Each teams plays each opponent once and the winner of the event will be promoted to the Top Division. The last-ranked team will be relegated to Division I Group B.

Coach Hand said: “All games are tough at this level and they will be five difficult games for us throughout the tournament.

“We are taking a strong team away with us, even though we have key guys out. I would love the team to come away with a medal.
“We are looking forward to the three-day camp now and get ourselves prepared for an important week.”

Netminders

Ben Bowns (Hull Stingrays)

Stephen Murphy (Belfast Giants)

Defencemen

Danny Meyers (Sheffield Steelers)

Dave Phillips (Belfast Giants)

Mark Richardson (Cardiff Devils)

Mark Thomas (Sheffield Steelers)

Steve Lee (Nottingham Panthers)

Luke Boothroyd (Manchester Phoenix)

Jonathan Weaver (Nottingham Panthers)

Forwards

David Clarke (Nottingham Panthers)

Robert Dowd (Troja-Ljungby)

Robert Farmer (Braehead Clan)

Ben Davies (Cardiff Devils)

Phil Hill (Cardiff Devils)

Robert Lachowicz (Nottingham Panthers)

Matthew Myers (Nottingham Panthers)

Greg Owen (Basingstoke Bison)

Craig Peacock (Belfast Giants)

Aaron Nell (Swindon Wildcats)

Ashley Tait (Sheffield Steelers)

Colin Shields (Belfast Giants)

 

The schedule of the games are as follows;

14th April@19:30 – Hungary v GB

15th April @16:00 – GB v Kazakhstan

17th April @16:00 – GB v Italy

19th April @16:00 – GB v Japan

20th April @12:30 – GB v South Korea

GB Preliminary Squad announced for Hungary challenge

Preliminary squad named ahead of Hungary World Championships. (photo by Diane Davey)

Great Britain Head Coach Tony Hand has named his 41 man preliminary squad ahead of the Division 1A World Championships in Budapest next month.

GB will be aiming for a promotion to the World’s top flight division as they take on hosts Hungary; as well as Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan and South Korea in the championship between 14 April and 20 April.

Hand will select a final 22 man roster before departure for the tournament next month following the conclusion of both the EIHL and EPL Play-off final weekends.

The GB rosters, even the preliminary named squads, have been dominated by Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) representatives. However in recent times English Premier League (EPL) players have been included for selection. This could have something to do with Hand being the Manchester Phoenix player/coach; and being in a better position to analyse opposing players and assess their qualities for the GB team.

There is a notable exclusion to the initial selection of Sheffield Steelers’ defenceman Rob Sarich, the only dual-national player in Riga, Latvia earlier this year. As such there are no dual-national players included in the preliminary squad for Hungary. Sheffield and Belfast are the most represented teams from the EIHL with 6 players each, whilst the recently EIHL Champions Nottingham have 5 players present. Basingstoke Bison are the most represented team from the EPL with 3 players.

Coach Hand said: “There are a lot of new faces in this preliminary squad and it obviously gives me plenty of options. This is reward for the guys who have had a great season with their clubs.

“We have terrific talent in the UK, not just in the Elite League but in the EPL as well, and that shows in the strength of the squad. The final 22 will be a tough call, but I am lucky to be in this position with great talent at my disposal.”

The Pre-Olympic qualifying tournament held in Latvia in February showed that the GB team has made progress, however it also showed that the team has a number of weaknesses which will need to be addressed for Hungary. Despite having faced four of the teams in the past year or so, with Italy the only team GB hasn’t faced recently, the tournament will present new challenges for Hand and his men.

Although we cannot predict what will happen between now and April 14, with a number of games left to play in both the EIHL and EPL, injuries or other circumstances could see a very different and fresh squad fly out to Europe.

Although promotion to the top flight division is up for grabs for the winners, realistically GB will be competing for 3rd, 4th or 5th positions and therefore it would be an ideal opportunity to take some of the youth that is starting to develop, with a mixture of experienced players, and see how the team gets on. Success at international level for GB is a marathon and not a sprint, therefore if we miss out on the chance for promotion this time around; it is not to be seen as a setback but rather foundation building for the future years to come.

Schedule of Games:

14/04/13 – Hungary v GB (19:30)

15/04/13 – Kazakhstan v GB (16:00)

17/04/13 – Italy v GB (16:00)

19/04/13 – Japan v GB (16:00)

20/04/13 – GB v South Korea (12:30)

 

GB PRELIMINARY SQUAD

Netminders

 Ben Bowns (Hull Stingrays)

Stephen Murphy (Belfast Giants)

Geoff Woolhouse (Sheffield Steelers)

Stevie Lyle (Basingstoke Bison)

 

Defenceman 

Luke Boothroyd (Manchester Phoenix)

Danny Meyers (Sheffield Steelers)

Jonathan Weaver (Nottingham Panthers)

Adam Carr (MK Lightning)

Phil Hill (Cardiff Devils)

Kevin Phillips (Braehead Clan)

James Griffin (Coventry Blaze)

Stevie Lee (Nottingham Panthers)

Ben Morgan (Sheffield Steeldogs)

David Phillips (Belfast Giants)

Mark Richardson (Cardiff Devils)

Mark Thomas (Sheffield Steelers)

 

Forwards 

Greg Wood (Sheffield Steeldogs)

Ashley Tait (Sheffield Steelers)

Joe Greener (Basingstoke Bison)

Ben Campbell (Guilford Flames)

Matthew Towe (Belfast Giants)

Matthew Myers (Nottingham Panthers)

Aaron Nell (Swindon Wildcats)

Ben O’Connor (Arlan Kokshetau)

Greg Owen (Basingstoke Bison)

Colin Shields (Belfast Giants)

David Clarke (Nottingham Panthers)

Leigh Jamieson (MK Lightning)

Robert Lachowicz (Nottingham Panthers)

Russ Cowley (Coventry Blaze)

Ben Davies (Cardiff Devils)

Matthew Davies (Hull Stingrays)

Robert Dowd (Troja-Ljungby)

Tom Duggan (Manchester Phoenix)

Robert Farmer (Braehead Clan)

Mark Garside (Belfast Giants)

Matthew Haywood (Braehead Clan)

Jason Hewitt (Sheffield Steelers)

Craig Peacock (Belfast Giants)

Jonathan Phillips (Sheffield Steelers)

Shaun Thompson (Bracknell Bees)